John Elmer Tinsley

John Elmer Tinsley Sr. was born June 20th, 1951 to Fay and Agnes Tinsley in East St. Louis Illinois. John passed away January 25th, 2020 at his home in North Ft. Myers Florida at the age of 68 years old.

As a young man, John was in the Boy Scouts where he earned the highest rank of Eagle Scout - a proud moment shared with his father.  John married his lifelong love and high school sweetheart, Karen Gabioud, on August 23, 1971. He proudly served his country for 6 years with the National Guard. During his service he moved to Florida with his family.

John is first and foremost a family man, dedicated to his wife, Karen and a proud father and grandfather. John is known for his willingness to help those he knew as well as those he didn’t.  John has always been a dedicated hard worker. His hands were rarely still as he worked to fix any problem. He could always be found working on some project or building something new.

John is preceded by his parents Fay and Agnes Tinsley and his sisters, Shirley Muckensturm and Joanna Needham. He is survived by his wife, Karen Tinsley, daughter Lisa (Shaun) Netsch, Sons John Jr (Arlinda) Tinsley and Joseph Tinsley and 6 grandchildren Hayley, Ethan, Michael, Matthew, Malia, Mia, brother Sonnie (Elaine) Tinsley and many nieces and nephews.

Please join us in celebrating the full and beautiful life of John Tinsley, Sr. at Gallaher American Family Funeral Home Wednesday, January 29, 2020 from 5:00pm-8:00pm.